Insomnia
by CountryGrl
Summary: Just a temporary title, cos that's what I have at the moment. A series of one-shots, mainly Ten/Rose....drabbles with fluff attached. Reviews are, I'm told, love!
1. Secret Garden

**AN: This came to me at 11pm and wouldn't leave me alone until I wrote it down... I didn't realise until I'd finished it that I got the idea from something the Doctor said to Rose once. You might spot the almost quote, or you might not... **

**Disclaimer: I own a lot of things. Doctor Who is not one of them.**

When Rose was little, her favourite film had been ''The Secret Garden'' - not so much for the story as for that one scene, when Mary finds the garden and it all comes alive - every flower and bush and tree blossoming in a matter of seconds. She used to wind the video back to that spot again and again, until finally it loosened the tape and wouldn't play any more, so Jackie had thrown it away.

She was telling the Doctor this, one day in the TARDIS - he'd been tinkering at the console and she hadn't thought he'd even been listening properly - but then he surprised her by looking her right in the eye and saying, ''I can take you there.''

She did a double take. ''You what?''

He was moving round the console now, pressing buttons and pulling levers. ''Well, not _there _exactly, but a place where that happens. What d'you say?''

Rose gave him one of her trademark grins. ''Go on then.''

He winked at her over the console. ''Hold on tight!''

* * *

''The planet Lupina,'' the Doctor said in a whisper as he led Rose out of the TARDIS, and into a dense, dark forest, the tall trees around them casting eerie shadows around their feet, ''has the fastest rising sun in this sector of the galaxy. Sunlight comes and goes, lasting only a few minutes at a time. The plants treat this as normal daylight, and they bloom and die in about five minutes. Any...moment...now,'' he said softly, a note of anticipation in his voice as his breath drew delicate swirls of mist in the cool air in front of them.

And then, suddenly, it was no longer dark. The whole forest was filled with a brilliant orange glow and to Rose's awe, she saw all around them, flowers blooming forth on every tree and bush, tiny buds forming into huge blossoms right before their eyes.

She gave a little gasp of pure wonderment. ''It's beautiful,'' she breathed.

''Isn't it.'' the Doctor agreed. He took her hand suddenly, squeezing it gently. ''As good as the film?'' he asked with a chuckle.

''Better. A _lot _better,'' said Rose, still staring around at the breathtaking beauty of it all.

They stood there for the longest four minutes of Rose's life - just the two of them, surrounded by flowers of every colour and shade imaginable. Rose wished she could remember everything about it, every last detail, but she knew her memory could never be this perfect.

Then, abruptly, the Doctor turned round, back towards the TARDIS. She didn't follow him. She just carried on watching.

And then the light faded, just as quickly as it had appeared. In the half-light, Rose watched as every flower withered and shrank away, folding in and collapsing until there was nothing but dark leaves again.

Silence.

The door of the TARDIS creaked open. ''Rose.'' said the Doctor in a low voice.

She waited for a minute, and then turned to look at him. For a moment he looked older than she'd ever seen him look.

And as she made her way back to the ship, she wondered if he'd done it on purpose. If he'd run away just before he could see the pretty, delicate petals droop and fade away into the night.

Just before they withered and died.


	2. Loss

**A/N: I'm writing this having only just woken up, so I'm not sure how much of it makes sense and how much is gibberish...I'm not even sure it's worth putting up, but I'll try it anyway.**

**It's set...sometime in the future, but I'm not sure when. All I know is it's probably the 10th Doctor. (I should also probably point out that I may have, a little, been inspired by elvespiratesandcowboysohmy's ''Rose's Room'' - although it's nowhere near as great as that. Read it, if you haven't already, she is brilliant :D)**

**DISCLAIMER: I own a toy cyberman whose joints have seized up. Can I trade it for Doctor Who rights?**

.

She asked him once about his home: one glance at the look on his face and she knew it wasn't a good idea to pursue it, so she let it go. Patted him on the arm, and said, ''So, where to next?''

Within seconds the look was gone, and he was prancing around the console, pushing and pulling random buttons and jabbering on about some planet he was going to take her to. There wasn't a trace of that look, but she vowed never to ask him again. She didn't think she could stand it.

Then, one day, maybe a few weeks later - they'd been back to her time, and had a run-in with her ex boyfriend. Suffice to say their parting hadn't been a pleasant one. He was bitter about her running off with a stranger - and she wasted no time in telling him (quite loudly, too, and in the middle of the street) that if he hadn't been such a lying cheater, she'd never have wanted to leave in the first place.

The Doctor listened, calmly, to her rants as they walked back to the TARDIS. Finally he said, ''Cheer up. No use dwelling on it now - he can be a million light years away in a few seconds, if you like. Where d'you wanna go?''

He was only trying to take her mind off it, of course. On any other day she would've loved him for it, and gone gallivanting off to any planet he chose. But today she was so...angry...and what he'd just said seemed to trivialise everything. Her face set in a scowl, she looked right at him and said, ''Yes, well, what would you know? You've never lost anyone.''

For a moment they stood there, eyes locked, something building in his which she couldn't recognise...was it anger, or something stronger?

Then the moment passed and he broke her gaze, looked down. His face seemed to...crumple, but he wasn't crying, he just looked...well, devastated didn't even begin to cover it.

Clearly he had lost someone, and not too long ago either.

She let him alone for a little while, went to her room and sat on the bed, feeling horrible and wanting to tell him so, but knowing that he needed to be on his own for a bit.

When she emerged an hour later, he was looking more his normal self again. He didn't even mention what had happened, just said, ''They make the universe's biggest ice creams in the parlour on Kalobia, how about it?''

She gave him a small nod, and he switched to hyper mode once more. But the sadness didn't leave his eyes for a long while, even while they were eating the biggest ice creams in the universe and laughing like a pair of hyenas. Behind it all, there was the misery and hurt, and because of it she couldn't meet his eyes the whole day.

Whoever it was he'd lost, it had been recent. And it was almost as bad as losing his home.

...

**:S Review if you didn't hate it...!**


	3. If Music be the Food of Love

**AN: Hey, whaddya know, I can't sleep again! And I've gotta be up early for school tomorrow, too! But...I've been wanting to do a songfic thingummy for ages. So, um, here goes...! **

**CLIER: I AM SAD (see what I did there?)**

**.**

**.**

**.**

DEATH AND ALL HIS FRIENDS - COLDPLAY

The Doctor remembered saying once that when you'd lost enough, you lose the ability to even feel the loss - which is the greatest loss of all.* He'd been younger then, and he wondered if he'd even known the meaning of the word in those days. He'd seen so much death on so many worlds, so much death he could have prevented if he'd been there sooner, or if he'd not been there at all.

And death always brought his friends along: pain, anger, regret, misery, guilt. And the Doctor thought how unfair it was that death was never alone, and yet he always was.

*The quote's from Autumn Mist by David A. McIntee, if anyone cares. It's 8th Doctor.

.

ONLY WHEN I SLEEP - THE CORRS

Rose dreamed of him every night.

However much she tried to focus on other things, in the day, whenever she closed her eyes and succumbed to sleep, he always returned to her.

Sometimes the dreams were terrifying, dark nightmares, and she would scream out loud, and wake in a cold sweat. And sometimes they were sweet dreams, filled with his face, both of them, and he would talk to her and laugh with her and gaze at her with those deep brown, bright blue eyes.

Rose didn't know which was worse.

.

NOBODY'S FOOL - AVRIL LAVIGNE

Martha wasn't stupid - she could see it in his eyes, every time her name was mentioned, she could hear the crack in his voice every time he said that one short word. She knew she'd never be anything to him, nothing more than a friend, a confidant. She wasn't worthy of him, not really. He deserved someone who could give him forever, and that wasn't her. She hoped he'd find his someone one day, but until then... a girl could dream.

.

YOU'RE NOT SORRY - TAYLOR SWIFT

She wishes she could believe him when he says he'll come back for her. But she knows this time it's goodbye. It's suicide to go back to that ship, but she's always known that he'll give his life up for someone else. He wouldn't let himself die any other way.

He looks right at her, says he's sorry. But she knows him better than that. He's not sorry to die to save a thousand lives. He wouldn't be sorry to die to save one. He's that kind of person, and boy does she love him for it.

There's only one thing she can do. She takes his hand. Pulls him back. ''I'm coming with you.''

.

HEART OF MINE - PETER SALETT

He's always tried to block off his hearts from mortals who could break them so easily. But he can't hide them from her. And his hearts don't belong to him any more. They're well and truly hers, and they always will be.

**(Ick, I started too late on that one and wrote the entire thing in the last chorus...lool)**

.

ALL I WANT IS YOU - GLEN CAMPBELL

They're stranded. The TARDIS, his beautiful ship, is gone, and they're stranded, on a tiny planet on the edge of a galaxy no-one can see. He's going to walk the slow path, and she's going to walk the fast one, but they'll walk it together. Because all is not lost, as long as they have each other.

.

UNDISCLOSED DESIRES - MUSE

He's gone before he can finish the sentence. From how he started, it seems like there's only one way he could have finished. But if he'd wanted to say it...he'd had a million opportunities. Oh, she believed he felt it, she'd always known he'd felt it the same as her. But he could never say it. Sticks and stones might well break her bones...but his words would never hurt her because he wasn't strong enough to tell her. And she'd never wished for anything quite so hard as she had those three words.

.

GIRL IN THE MOON - DARIUS

They had that little saying on earth - ''once in a blue moon''. He'd seen enough of them to know that they weren't anywhere near as rare as that, but the point of it was...people like her were hard to come by. And he knew he'd never let her go, now he'd found her. She was his girl in a blue moon.

**(Haha. Epic fail.)**

.

THESE DAYS - GLEN CAMPBELL

Usually silence was something that unnerved him. He loved to be around people - especially those beautifully, wonderfully stupid apes. He'd had so many friends whose lives he'd torn apart, who he'd saved and destroyed. None of them would ever be able to live normal lives again, because of him. And usually it wouldn't have bothered him - he gave them a choice, between the universe and home. The ones who chose the universe would see things they'd never imagined, and the ones who chose home would live happily, if not forever, after. But these days, he thought it best to stick with the silence. He couldn't destroy the silence, unless he spoke, and there was no-one there to speak to.

.

NEVER MIND - NANCI GRIFFITH

Once, he almost told her. He came so close. They were in a restaurant on Sheloa, just a normal day really - but there was something about her at that moment, she looked almost...radiant. Their eyes met, and both his hearts skipped a beat.

''Rose?'' he said.

She tucked a strand of perfect blonde hair behind one ear, smiled, ''Yeah?''

And he almost said it. So close. But at the last moment, he couldn't make himself do it.

''Never mind.''

.

.

.

**Argh...I suck at these! Is there a technique of how to do it well, cos if there is, I'd love to know what it is! (And yes...my taste in music is...erratic. Leave me alone. I have to share an iTunes account with my dad, for pete's sake.)**

**Reviews are, I'm told, love!**


	4. Coaldust

**AN: So, here's the deal. Last weekend a friend and I went to the National Coal Mining Museum in Yorkshire, and we went on a tour down the actual mine. It was SO much more fun than we'd expected. And in the car, on the way home, I thought of...well, this. **

**I've **_**tried **_**to get the facts and the history right, but every website I looked on gave me different dates and names for things. In the end I just kind of...wrote. Call it creative license. Actually, call it whatever you want, I won't care. **

**It's a **_**lot**_** longer than any of my other drabble fics on here, but I'll see how it goes as part of this collection.**

**Reviews are love! **

**DISCLAIMER: I used to be a fourteen-year-old girl obsessed with something she could never own. But not any more! Can you guess what part changed?**

**...**

''Where are we, then?''

''Yorkshire, 1839. Town of Barnsley.''

''And what happens here?''

''Don't know, yet! Let's find out!''

Rose pulled her thick pink jacket around her as the harsh moor wind hit her squarely in the face. ''It's a bit nippy up 'ere, in't it?''

They were standing on top of a rather large hill. A rough dirt track at the foot of it lead to a little cluster of houses not too far in the distance.

''Ah well. _Nearly _in Barnsley, anyway,'' mused the Doctor, stroking the doorframe of the TARDIS lovingly.

Rose rolled her eyes. ''Well, I'm going to explore. Coming?''

He grinned at her. ''Of course.''

Hand in hand, they ran all the way down the hill without stopping, arriving at the bottom breathless with laughter.

''You nearly pulled me over!'' Rose gasped.

''And you nearly tore the whole time continuum apart! More than once!'' the Doctor laughed back. ''Come on!''

And they walked towards the little town...still hand in hand.

...

''Look at that, they've got a colliery here.''

''A what?''

''A colliery. A coal mine.''

''Oh, right. Can we go down it, d'you think?''

The Doctor shrugged. ''Don't see why not. Could be fun! 'Ere, mate,'' he said, dropping into the soft Yorkshire dialect they'd heard snippets of on their way through the town. ''Any chance of a tour of the mine?''

The man he was addressing looked at them with narrow, ice-blue eyes. He was dressed in shabby work clothes but was standing in front of the colliery entrance with an air of importance which suggested he held some authority over the place. ''Depends 'oo's asking, I should think.''

The Doctor coughed, thrust a hand in his inside pocket. ''Ah, well, I'm Doctor John Smith of the North Yorkshire Mines Inspection...Association. And this is my...colleague, Miss Rose Tyler.''

He held out the small rectangular wallet which Rose knew contained the slightly psychic paper, and thrust it under the man's nose.

''Ah! Doctor Smith, Miss Tyler, my apologies. Didn't know we was due an inspection, see, else we'd've had it all arranged. 'Course, a tour will be in order, and we 'ope you'll find everything...satisfact'ry.''

The Doctor smiled. ''Of course.''

The man signalled to a young boy who had just come in to view at the entrance of the colliery. ''You, boy. Take the gentleman and the young lady down to the mineshaft. Them's the inspectors, so you better be treatin' 'em with respect or it'll be coming out of your pay.''

And with that, he nodded his head in the direction of the Doctor and Rose and disappeared through a wooden door, on one side of the stone wall surrounding the colliery.

The boy, who'd come closer to them now, was about eleven or twelve, dressed in dirty trousers which might have been brown once, and a shirt which hung in rags around his shouders. His hair was covered in black dust and his feet were completely bare, but the cheeky grin on his face was enough to make Rose warm to him immediately. She smiled back.

''Hello there,'' said the Doctor, looking down at him, ''what's your name?''

''George, sir,'' said the boy, leading them through the stone arch to the colliery itself. ''George Somers. You'll be wanting to go down the mineshaft, then, sir?''

''Yes, if you wouldn't mind, George,'' the Doctor said, following their guide down some stone steps which seemed to go straight into the ground. They were uneven, too, Rose had to cling to the walls either side of her to stop herself losing her balance.

''It's dark down there, sir, we'll need lanterns,'' George told them seriously, handing them each a small lantern, a bright orange flame flickering inside. ''And I'll take the canary, just in case.''

To Rose's surprise, she saw he'd picked up a tiny little cage, with a handle on the top, with a bright yellow bird perched on a little wooden bar in the middle.

''What's the bird for?'' she whispered to the Doctor.

''It's to detect poisonous gases,'' he whispered back, as George led them through the tunnel-like passageway and round a corner. ''The gases affect small creatures a lot quicker than they do people. If the canary starts flapping about and falling off the perch, you know it's time to get out of there.''

Rose frowned. ''But wouldn't it kill the bird?''

''Usually, yes.''

''That's horrible,'' said Rose, looking at the little feathered creature in George's cage.

''Mm,'' the Doctor hummed his agreement. ''But better a dead bird than a dead miner, so they used to say. If you ask me, celery's a much more efficient way to do it.''

Rose didn't know whether he was joking or not, so she let it pass. Instead, she decided to talk to their new tour guide. ''You're a bit young to be working down the mines, aren't you, George?'' she asked.

He smiled at her. ''I'm eleven, miss. I might not look it, I've always been on the small side.''

Rose raised her eyebrows. ''Eleven? And how long you been working here?''

'''Bout four years, miss.''

Now Rose's mouth dropped open in shock. ''Since you were _seven_?''

He laughed at her surprise. ''I know! All my brothers started at five, of course, but I was ill the first year and Ma wouldn't let me go. Then when I was six my oldest brother Freddie...well. Ma was a bit upset that year and wouldn't let any of us near the mines again. Then when Father lost 'is job, she didn't have no choice, we all 'ad to go back. Went to school for a whole year, I did, it were luv'ly.''

As the young boy chattered on, Rose found she could hardly speak with shock. Children of five years old, working down a coal mine? That was just wrong.

The Doctor, now walking alongside her, slipped an arm through hers. ''The law changes in 1850, and children under the age of fifteen can't be employed legally to work underground. But some mines still keep them on and hope no-one catches them. Children are a lot cheaper to pay...and they're easily replaceable.''

''Then, George's brother Freddie...?'' Rose trailed off, knowing the answer.

''I should think so, yes,'' said the Doctor sadly.

Rose bit her lip, afraid she would cry. ''That's just...inhuman.''

He nodded. ''I know.''

He squeezed her hand. They carried on walking.

Eventually they came to the end of the long passageway and George stopped, nodding to the rather unstable-looking lift, which had no sides, just wooden rails, and was suspended on thick ropes. It was evidently operated by the wiry man with a hooked nose, who was standing next to a wooden contraption with a large lever sticking out of it.

''We need to go down, Bill,'' said George to the man, ''These here are Doctor Smith and Miss Tyler, they're inspecting the mine.''

Bill gave them a toothless smile. ''I'll be sending you down then. Hold on tight to the rails, miss, it isn't always a steady ride down to the bottom.''

As they stepped on to the lift, Rose felt strangely nervous. The wooden boards beneath their feet were set ever so slightly apart from one another, and between each one she could see a thin shaft of light coming from below, which didn't exactly make her feel safe.

She held on tightly to the rail with one hand. The other hand was firmly in the Doctor's grasp. She wasn't about to let go now.

''Just pull the bell when you reach the bottom, lad, so I can pull it back up again,'' Bill told George, who nodded confidently, as if he'd done this thousands of times before.

_He probably has_, Rose realised. She kept forgetting, he'd been here since he was seven years old. It didn't seem like much of a childhood for the poor kid.

The lift creaked and groaned as they began their descent. Rose found herself leaning towards the Doctor as layers and layers of rock and coal went rushing past them on all sides.

It made her feel slightly dizzy.

Okay, _very _dizzy.

The Doctor must have noticed, because he shouted above the noise of the rattling lift, ''So, George, what's your job, then?''

''I'm a hurrier, sir,'' George yelled back.

''Oh, really? Very posh. What's that, then?''

''I pull the corf-wagons along the track, sir, to the loaders, who send all the coal up to the surface. They 'afta use kids, see, 'cos the tunnels are too low for grown-ups.''

''And how much are you paid?''

''Fourpence a day, sir. Mr Tomley's a generous one, the old collier when Freddie started only gave the hurriers tuppence, if that.''

''And was that Mr Tomley we met outside?'' the Doctor asked.

''Yes, sir.''

''I see.''

With a slight bump, they reached the bottom of the shaft. It was hot down here, Rose noticed, unzipping her jacket to let it hang loosely around her shoulders.

She was thankful for the lantern now, as it was even darker and she could hardly see where she was walking without the light from the candle.

''D'you want to see where I work, miss?'' George asked, his eyes glinting slightly in the darkness.

''Okay,'' she said, and let him lead her through a small archway a few feet away from the lift. "But, call me Rose, yeah?"

She had to bend over double to follow him, and she could only imagine how much more difficult it was for the Doctor, who was a good foot and a half taller than her.

She was appalled at the size of the wagons George would have to pull; they looked far too heavy for a kid his size. He showed her a thick leather belt which was attached to the front of the wagon.

"I wear this round me waist, you see miss, it makes the weight seem less, and I can keep me hands free for holding the lantern."

He said it so cheerfully, in fact he was so happy about everything. Rose was certain if she had to work like this…well, she wouldn't be happy about it. She'd be moaning and complaining non-stop. But then, she supposed, George had grown up in a different century to her. Things were different. Sometimes she forgot that the people she met when she was with the Doctor were so far away from her world - even the ones who lived on the same planet.

"Do you like your job, George?" she asked.

He turned, and gestured that they should go back the way they'd come. "Doesn't matter if I do, miss, we all 'afta work, there'd be no money else. But I get along. No use being miserable 'bout stuff you 'afta do, is there?"

She smiled, though it made her sad that he spoke like an old, wise man. He should be out playing and learning and having fun, not trapped down in a dark mine pulling wagons and trying to see the bright side of life.

They came back out of the tiny archway, to see the Doctor standing there, sonic screwdriver held against the stone wall, a frown on his face. Obviously he hadn't attempted to crawl through with them.

George led them off in another direction, but she stood next to the Doctor for a moment. "Is everything all right?" she asked, noticing the frown.

He scratched the back of his neck, scrunched his face up in that special way he had. "We-ell, nothing's…wrong, as such…just, that rock, it's...vibrating."

Rose narrowed her eyes. "Should that worry us?"

"Nah, probably not," he said, the grin replacing the frown at once. "It is a coal mine after all. Come on, then."

They continued along the tunnel for a while, passing a number of miners, some of them leading the squat pit ponies along with them. They all looked worn out and tired, Rose assumed they were coming to the end of a long, hard shift.

As they went further on, though, they didn't meet any more miners. Rose became aware of a low hum coming from above their heads.

''George?'' said the Doctor slowly.

''Yes, sir?''

''Have you ever been this far along before?''

''No sir, they only blew it out the other day. But we can't have a tour without seeing it all, can we?''

He carried on striding forwards.

''George,'' said the Doctor again, ''I really think we should turn back...''

''Really, sir, there's no need to worry,'' George told them brightly, ''I'm used to this mine, honest, I wouldn't take you anywhere that wasn't safe.''

The hum was getting louder. The Doctor slowed down his pace. ''I know you wouldn't, George, but...''

George and Rose were now about eight metres in front of the Doctor. Both of them seemed completely unaware of the danger they might be in.

_Were _in.

Before he could even shout to warn them, the Doctor saw the rock above their heads start to collapse. A shower of dust and small stones hit them first and he saw Rose frantically pulling George backwards.

He ran towards them, covered the distance in less than five seconds, made a desperate grab for Rose's arm as the rocks began to tumble downwards.

They ran.

Finally the rockfall stopped and they stood in the tunnel, both breathing heavily, looking back at the heap of rubble that had so nearly cost them their lives.

''We made it,'' Rose panted, hardly believing the words. But something was missing. She looked around them, behind them, in front of them, but there was no sign of him.

''George!''

She looked at the Doctor, eyes full of fear, hope, dread, wanting reassurance from him...but he could only stare back at her.

''I'm sorry, Rose,'' he said, trying to pull her close, but she wouldn't let him.

''No!'' she yelled into the darkness. ''No.''

She fell to her knees at the foot of the mountain of rock and began throwing back clumps of it, her desperation giving her extra strength. He couldn't die like this, she wouldn't let him, he was so young, even if this was all he had to live for it was enough.

Nothing.

Still she wouldn't give in, not now. They had seen so many deaths, so many wasted lives, and she _couldn't _let George's name be added to that list.

She felt a hand on her shoulder. Somebody said her name.

''Rose.''

She looked up at the Doctor, the tears in her eyes glistening in the dark, his lantern the only spot of light in the tunnel.

''Rose. He's gone. There's nothing you can do.''

A sob racked her body and she was shaking, the anger of knowing she was powerless drowning the pain of the rocks which had hit her and the grief she had for the life of the little hurrier boy.

She let him pull her gently to her feet after a minute or two. He led her back the way they'd come.

They didn't speak until they reached the lift. He pulled the rope attached to the bell on the wall next to it, to let Bill know they were ready to be pulled up.

''It wasn't your fault, Rose,'' he said as he joined her. Her knuckles were turning white with gripping the railings so tightly. ''Even if you'd pulled him back sooner he might still have died. It's no life for children in a mine, Rose, nearly all of them were injured or killed. It's wrong and terrible and should never have been allowed, but it's how the universe works.''

And as the lift began its slow ascent, Rose knew that he was right. She nodded.

...

Bill, the lift-operator, had a very dull job. He had been a 'proper' miner once, but now he was old and half-blind and was good for nothing except pulling the lever once every 12 hours for the next shift of workmen to go down. It was seven hours in, so he wouldn't be pulling it again. The two inspectors had come back up so he could doze in the corner for another five hours, until the night workers came for their shift.

Or so he thought.

The bell rang again, and Bill the lift-operator groaned as he shuffled over to the lever, wondering who the bloody hell wanted pulling up this time.

...

**AN: Well, I hope that wasn't **_**too **_**bad. It's the first time I've tried to write a proper sort of story/adventure/whatever for Doctor Who. I just wanted to try it. I'll go back to drabbles soon, I promise.**

**But just as a...footnote, I suppose:**

**I decided to name George's character after a really sweet little boy who was on our tour, and who made me and my friend laugh so much with his comments on everything he saw. It wasn't until later that I found out there had been a real George Somers working in the Higham Colliery at Barnsley. He was a hurrier, and he died in a gas explosion in 1860, along with every one else in his work area. He was twelve years old. Five years before, a law had been passed to say he was three years too young to be working down there in the first place. **

**Which just goes to show, Rose was right. That's inhuman.**


	5. Walk with Me

**AN: Just a silly little songfic. But a proper one this time, instead of tiny paragraphs of nothing in particular. I suppose it's Nine/Rose - thinking about Ten too much today would just make me sad. The song, of course, is **_**Walk of Life **_**by...well, Google it if you don't know to find out why it's so appropriate... **

**Disclaimer: I don't even own the inspiration, from a song which, I think you'll agree, could practically be **_**written **_**for these two. Seriously, all it's missing are the words 'Rose' and 'Doctor'. **

**.**

**.**

**.**

Walk of Life

_Let_ _me_ _care_ _for_ _someone_ _else,_

_I_ _don't_ _wanna_ _talk_ _about_ _myself,_

_I_ _need_ _to_ _shed_ _the_ _light_ _on_ _you_

_To_ _understand_ _the_ _things_ _you_ _do_

_Could_ _we_ _share_ _a_ _little_ _time,_

_Break_ _the_ _bread_ _and_ _sip_ _the_ _wine,_

_There's_ _no_ _time_ _to_ _hesitate,_

_Save_ _me_ _from_ _this_ _heavy_ _weight_

Being with her, it...set him free in a way he didn't know was possible. While she was near it was as if he could do anything. She gave him strengh.

But she scared him too.

She was so young, so...fragile, he couldn't fly too high in case he dropped her. There were certain things he _couldn't _do, couldn't tell her, not yet.

Too soon.

So he listened to her instead, the stories of her childhood, how she'd grown up, never feeling special or different, just another little girl from a London estate who would grow up and live her life and die and be forgotten.

He knew it wasn't true, he'd seen it in her eyes, heard it in her voice. She was meant for so much more than that.

He was meant to find her.

And she made him better. She healed the wounds he wouldn't show without even knowing it, with only her smile and her laugh. However many times he saved her, he'd always know that _she_ had saved _him _first.

_Are you gonna walk the walk of life with me?_

_Are you gonna see more than you dreamed you'd see?_

_Are you gonna walk, hand in hand with me?_

_Can you be the one to set my shadow free?_

Walking was just this normal thing that every biped in the galaxy (except the ones who used their hands or didn't move at all) did every day. It was a way of getting from point A to point B, it was a way of travelling without the technology so many races craved.

But with her it was so much more than that. Walking with her was like treading on clouds.

That sounded poncy, in his head, but really there was no other way of describing it. In fact, he'd walked on a lot of clouds in his time, and he might even go so far as thinking that this was even better.

Sometimes it took him by surprise that she still wanted to walk with him. He showed her things beyond her imagination, true, but there was an awful lot of danger too. There had to be some reason she stayed, didn't there...?

Then there was holding her hand.

A very human gesture, yet it...affected him. Quite strongly. It made his hearts sort of...jump. At first it worried him, but he quickly became used to it.

It got to the point that the only time his hearts jumped was when she _wasn't _holding his hand.

_Are you gonna try and understand with me,_

_Are you gonna be the best that you could be?_

_Are you gonna walk the walk of life with me?_

For all he pretended to know everything about everything, there were some things he just couldn't get his head around.

Like how this little human girl, just another stupid, wonderful ape, could change him so much, and make him feel again.

He knew now that's what it was, she had pulled him out of his black hole and shown him what it was to live again after all he had lost.

He had shown her the universe, but she had shown him _life_.

Some of the people he travelled with needed to see the universe to make themselves better, to understand what it meant to be someone else, to sleep under different stars. And it was true of her, in a way, but she learnt quicker than most.

Because she was the best.

_Losing my reality_

_You can bring it back to me_

_With you I want to spend my youth,_

_With you I want to live the truth._

_Could we pass a golden hour,_

_Sow the seed and grow the flower? _

_Reap reward and clear our sins_

_This is where our life begins_

There were times when he needed reminding what was important.

When he tried to destroy the corrupt slave-city of Kava, only she would tell him that there were hundreds of children there who had never done anything wrong. Who could die for what their parents had done. Who they could save.

Coming from her it sounded so logical. He couldn't believe he hadn't seen it before. And it wasn't only logic, she said it from the heart. She meant it.

She'd brought him back from a death-state but he kept slipping into his old ways of cold destruction. This body, this Him, was born of war and wouldn't let him forget it. But she was always there to restore him to reality.

And he was oh, so thankful.

He didn't have to lie to her or pretend. She was more his equal than many of his people had been. They did not understand him, they called him a wanderer, a renegade.

She understood him and she wandered with him. He was glad to be a renegade, if it meant being with her.

_Don't let me walk alone,_

_Now that I have touched my home._

_There'll always be a place for you_

_A time, a perfect space for you._

The thing that scared him most was that this could end in the blink of an eye.

Now that he'd found her, he realised there'd been a hole in his life up until now, which she filled. Perfectly.

He did not want to walk alone any longer.

And he didn't have to.

_Walk the walk of life with me,_

_See more than you dreamed you'd see_

_Walk the walk of life with me._


	6. Cliché

**AN: A tribute fic would require me to accept that the Tenth Doctor has gone. Which I don't. Ergo = no tributes. This, on the other hand, is an incredibly short...thing...I dreamed up. In the day time! I know, weird, right?**

**Disclaimer: Not a sausage.**

* * *

_Life goes on._

You know that better than most.

_No time like the present._

So run from it. Live in the past and the future. Anywhere but now.

_Everything comes to he who waits._

And he who waits loses everything if he waits too long.

_Actions speak louder than words._

But that doesn't mean you shouldn't say it. If only you knew.

_Forgive and forget._

She forgot. You know that she wouldn't forgive you. If only she knew.

_Nothing lasts forever._

And that's the story of your life. Everything has its time and everything dies. No matter how much you love it.

_Time heals._

The biggest lie you've ever heard.


	7. Morning

**AN: Another second-persony thing. Maybe it's a bug I've caught. And yes, half past midnight. Insomnia, thou hast returned! **

**Disclaimer: Yes. I mean no. **

…**.**

You've never been a morning person.

Your alarm clock announces the arrival of yet another day and you slam it into silence, struggling to sit up in bed, bleary-eyed.

Really, what is the point? No-one will notice if you're late anyway.

But still you get out of bed, because that's what you've always done, every morning.

Every single morning, the same.

Breakfast, you grab, not really noticing, kiss your mum on the cheek and then you're off, down the stairs, out of the estate, holding on oh-so-loosely to the bar on the back of the bus because it's the closest you ever get to daring.

And as you walk into work you sigh and you remember a man standing in the shadows. Four months ago, now. He said you're going to have a great year.

Well, maybe this is where it starts.


	8. Play On

**AN: ****I'm back again! I know, so soon, right? Inspiration twice in two days… I promise you, it won't last. **

**I am well and truly infected with this second-person POV bug. And since If Music be the Food of Love gets more reviews than **_**any**_** other chapter – why is that?! – I decided to give it a little reprise – but this time I'm picking a certain character for each one. Because I'm cool like that. However, I'm steering clear of the Doctor and Rose themselves, because I want to experiment. Same rules as before, iPod on shuffle, use the time of the actual song and hope it isn't a disaster!**

**On a separate note, thanks to "…" for your review of chapter 3. Because obviously I can't RR if you don't have an account (or even a name.) So thanks! **

**Disclaimer: My mum got mad at me for taping a Blink poster to my bedroom wall. I bet Steven Moffat doesn't get that from his mum…**

* * *

**He Lives in You** _(OST Lion King 2)_

You tell people – those that know – that after you left, you made a new life for yourself. Away from him. You moved on.

That, of course, is a lie.

You built your own TARDIS in the shape of an attic, your lipstick isn't, well, lipstick, and although you are trapped (trapped! You're even starting to think like him) in one time zone on one planet, you are still out doing all that you did with him. Witty one-liners and sneaky escape plans, a purseful of fake IDs and a lot of running, yes, lots and lots of that.

You have not moved on at all – you have simply rebuilt your old life, not that that's a bad thing, not at all. For you know better than most that life on earth can be an adventure…as long as he lives on in you, Sarah Jane.

_(AN: this was originally Donna. But the words didn't sit right. So I Sarah Jane-ified it. I love this sound track so much…)_

* * *

**In Too Deep **_(Sum 41)_

You're a genius, so really it shouldn't take you long to figure out that you're way out of your depth here, anywhere, with them.

You dreamed of the stars, of the things they could hold for you, but you never thought it would be this… insane.

And they're no help. Every time you go to ask one of them a question you find them lost in each other's eyes and you might as well not be there.

You're in over your head, Adam, perhaps it's time you went home.

Or you could, you know, get a machine built in your head. Whatever works for you.

_(AN Originally Mickey's thoughts on joining the TARDIS team, but Adam wanted to play, so I let him. O__ne of my favourite songs, this.)_

* * *

**There Are Worse Things I Could Do **_(Stockard Channing, Grease OST)_

You don't ask to come because you have some sort of burning desire to see the universe. The stars are not calling your name, most definitely (in fact the most you ever thought about them was "pretty twinkly things") and above all, you're not going to relish having your head nearly bitten off by the Big Blue Blobs from Bixidell. No, really you ask because you feel there must be something you're missing. Just looking at Rose now, she seems like a different person. Is it space that does that to you, you wonder, or is it just that she found the Doctor?

Either way, Mickey, there are worse things you could do.

_(And *this* one was originally Donna searching far and wide for the Doctor after TRB. I swear __most of these started completely differently to how they turn out.)_

* * *

**Girl [on] the Moon **_(Darius. This one again! It loves Doctor Who. But then, who doesn't? I could just skip it, but this is a different angle than last time, and I changed the title XD)_

The Earth looks so beautiful from up here. You're sort of lost, looking at it, because it never occurred to you until now, how very small you are.

You hold on to the railings of the balcony, as if they'll stop you falling out of the dreamworld, like they're the only things keeping you upright.

You exhale slowly, eyes wide, and the man standing next to you thinks you're another human simply amazed at being on the moon, but secretly, Martha Jones, you're scared to death.

* * *

**Keep Holding On **_(Avril Lavigne) _

Well, you've got your daughter back. That's something.

But it's little consolation because she's so different, distant, cries all the time when she thinks you're not looking. And you just want to hold her and stroke her hair and make everything better, except you can't. The one thing that'll make her okay again is gone for good.

It's hard not to feel useless, but it's not in your nature to give up. You keep trying, but she won't come out of her cocoon, she refuses to talk to you about anything that matters.

It's all you can do to hope that she doesn't fall over the edge, because even you can't make her hold on forever, Jackie.

* * *

**Viva La Vida **_(Coldplay)_

For one final second you are everything you could never be.

You tell him to get out of the way and he does, and it's all the more painful because in a moment of solidarity, you echoed his words, and because you know that it has to end this way: an act of brotherhood is what finishes you.

You spent your lives creating yourself, the heartless villain. If you ever died for good you were to go out in a blaze of glory. And instead, you find yourself… noble.

It makes you sick. But no time for that. Goodbye, Master.

_(Dilemma on this __one during the introduction: then the line "I used to rule the world", and I couldn't not have him. XD)_

* * *

**Invisible **_(Taylor Swift) This one wanted Martha, it was hungry for Martha, but Darius already has her. So…_

Sometimes you feel like part of the scenery.

You let life drift around you, a whirl of everything and nothing, voices and faces and memories come and go, and leave you empty.

There's an space in your heart where nothing ever was and you hate it. Sometimes there's a flicker of life but otherwise you're a shadow of someone you couldn't have been. Invisible.

If only you knew, Donna, how brilliant you never were.

* * *

**Don't Come Home Too Soon **_(Del Amitri) _

Off she goes, out into the stars. Wave her goodbye. You know this will be the time of her life. You're so happy for her, now that she can shine.

She's going to see so many things, so many worlds will sing songs of her and so many wonders will take her by surprise.

She'll see terrifying things too, she'll be afraid and horrified, but she'll love every minute of it, you know she will. This is who she is meant to be.

But the one thing that scares you is that when you see her again it'll be over. She'll have come home. She won't be able to return to this life unless she has to, you know her well enough that she'll fight to stay with him forever.

But she can't.

All you can do is wait, Wilf. Wait and hope she doesn't come home too soon. Because she's better, with him.

* * *

**What'cha Gonna Do? **_(Billie Piper) _

You're free. Flying. The rush you get is almost scary, now you have the universe in your hands. You can go anywhere you want. No rules. The choice is almost overwhelming.

All the things you're going to see will take your breath away. Soon you'll lose count of all the times you're lost for words. You'll explore places your ready-made brain could never imagine. There are planets and moons out there no-one's ever seen before, and you can be the first to step foot on them.

And maybe, one day, you'll find him.

After all, Jenny, he is your dad.

_(This one sort of came out of the blue. It has nothing to do with the song. Just the title, sort of.) _

* * *

**No More Cry **_(The Corrs) Oh, I give in. There is no one else for this song…_

By definition this should be the end of your story.

You have him. Well, a version of him.

And you're happy. For so many reasons…

You first had your suspicions when you were two weeks late, and the test confirmed those suspicions. You're now six months in and beginning to feel it.

He wants a boy and you want a girl, he likes "Xon" and you like "Lily". But of course, when the time comes, he or she will be everything to both of you. And this is your forever, really, this time.

Your story is not ending, Rose Tyler, it has not even begun.

_The Intergalactic Book of Baby Names, Volume 4267.0__  
Susan (female) __  
Origin: Earth Hebrew, meaning "lily" _

* * *

**Well, that's all for now! **

**Remember, reviews are love. Even just tell me which was your favourite, and I'll be happy. I'm easy to please :)**


	9. Realisation

**AN: I was in an angst mood initially, but this didn't want to stay angst. Then I went back and changed it, and now it doesn't even **_**begin **_**angst. (I know, I make sense.) Also, I'm being very bad and updating this story again when I should be updating my four other inprogs. But...what can I say? Doctor Who trumps all.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing. (I did, however, keep my 2008 Doctor Who calendar. The dates are wrong, but David Tennant is so very pretty....)**

* * *

You are sitting by a window, staring out. The gardens of your father's mansion are expansive and beautiful, but you hardly notice them. You are deep in thought.

You've been giving each other space over the last few days. After all that happened you both felt you needed some time to adjust. Recalibrate.

Sometimes you wonder why you feel so bittersweet inside. You have what you always wanted - the man you love, and forever, this time.

And he _is _the same man, you have to remember that. He can give you the only life he's got. And you're so, so happy.

Except for one thing.

He looks the same - same deep brown eyes and strong jaw, lean body and _great _hair. He thinks the same - and apart from the occasional ''Oi!'' his speech pattern is identical, and you can still do the thing where you tune out of his science monologue and stare deep into his eyes instead (and he _still _thinks you're listening.) You still finish each other's sentences and then laugh like you always used to, until you can hardly breathe.

He remembers everything - he might not have been there, physically, but it's all real to him, every moment, every shining memory. His hand still fits yours perfectly and when you run you keep in step.

He's the same man, only made better, for you. The way you always wished it could be. And yes, you're _so _happy, for yourself. This is _your _happy ending, _your _new life, end of _your _story.

So that one thing...it isn't that you miss something, or you wanted to be special, it isn't that you feel like you've been left for second best.

Because you aren't thinking about yourself - you're only desperately sad, because somewhere, out there, is Him. And he's all alone.

Who's gonna hold _his _hand now?

...

Outside, the skies darken, and droplets of rain begin to mist the window. As your eyes swim back into focus, you sigh, and turn your head slightly.

He is standing behind you, watching the rain too. You've no idea how long he's been there, but the saddest of smiles plays on his lips and you find yourself rising from your chair and going over to him.

His hand finds yours and your fingers interlink, you rest your head on his shoulder and you realise, finally, something you should have always known.

That other him, out there, you couldn't have given him forever, no-one can. You walked in to his life and you brightened it, for a fleeting moment, but in the end, he'll always be alone. And lonely. It may break your heart but you're not naive enough to think you could have fixed him, not any more. He needs someone, yes - but it can't always be you.

But this him, he _does _need you. So much. And you can fix him, you can make him better, just by loving him.

You can feel the beat of his single heart against your cheek, and the grip on your hand tightens, just a little, as he says, oh so softly,

''Rose Tyler. I love you.''

And you faintly wonder where the lump in your throat comes from as you whisper back, ''Quite right, too.''


	10. Bronze

**AN: I'm ba-ack! Do they say inspiration comes in twos? Well, they should. And yet again I've failed to make myself update my other stories. But...well, I don't have an excuse. **

**Ooh, and this is my 10th chapter! So I think I'm entitled to a longish AN, yeah? **

**This was born from over-thinking and re-reading **_**elvespiratesandcowboysohmy**_**'s 'Red Bicycle'. Read it, because as I'm pretty sure I've already said, she is brilliant. This is dedicated to her, too, because she writes me such beeaauutiful reviews all the time and she is awesome ;)**

**Takes place **_**either **_**after TRB or JE. Doesn't particularly matter. I did write it thinking soon after TRB, though. Meh...it's a bit fluffy, this one, and not my best. But I hope you enjoy...! **

**Disclaimer: Nope...**

...

He honestly hadn't meant to find her. It just happened.

...

Something was hiding in the air vents of Jericho Street Junior School. To be more precise, it was a K'rarth, a slimy black lizard-like creature from K'rarth'ath'a'ka'lo. Harmless, but it gave off a nasty smell, and he was afraid if anyone went to investigate they'd manage to hurt the poor little thing, and he didn't want that.

But apparently he'd chosen the wrong day to pay a visit. There were people bustling about everywhere, parents and teachers and little kids in red uniforms, far busier than your average school day. Something was obviously going on.

He managed to get out of the way of everybody in the end; a little cloakroom down the hallway appeared to be empty, and if he could just find the right frequency on the sonic screwdriver he'd be able to coax the K'rarth over to the grate and get him out, safe and sound.

Just as he was reaching into his pocket, though, he heard a sound. A sniffle, like someone was crying.

He edged round the row of coat pegs and there, sitting on the bench, was a little girl of about six, dressed in what appeared to be a gymnastics leotard, her blonde hair falling down out of a ponytail and her eyes all puffy.

She looked up at the sound of his footsteps, and right away, he knew. How could he not? Those eyes, that nose, the way her lip trembled just a little as she held back a sob, nothing had changed.

An image of this same little girl crying drifted into his mind and he shut it out, firmly.

He sat down next to her, his long legs almost coming up to his chin, the bench was so small. ''Now then,'' he said, ''What's a pretty girl like you doing hiding herself away like this, hmm?''

She looked at the floor, sniffed again. ''I don't want to do it.''

He blinked. ''Do what?''

''The competition.''

''Oohh,'' he nodded, ''the _competition_. Well, why not?''

''Because,'' she whispered, ''Everyone else's mummies and daddies are there, and my mummy's not and I don't want to do it.''

''Your mum can't come to watch?'' he asked, ''Why not?''

She shrugged. ''She forgot.''

''Ah.''

He wanted to say a lot of things, but he knew he couldn't. However much it might mean for him to get it off his chest, it would mean absolutely nothing to her, and might even ruin his chances of ever meeting her in the first place.

''We-eell, you never know. Mums always know best. She might be waiting in there, what's she gonna think if you don't turn up?''

She looked at him then, tears still glistening, but there was a glimmer of hope there too. ''Do you think? Do you think she remembered?''

He nodded. ''I'm sure she did.'' He reached into his pocket and brought out a large, multi-coloured hankie, and handed it to her. ''Here. Dry your eyes.''

She did so, and suddenly gave him the widest of smiles that still broke his hearts, because even though two of her top teeth were missing that smile was the same. How he'd missed it.

''It's very pretty,'' she said, looking at the hankie.

''You can keep it, if you like,'' he offered, but she shook her head.

''You keep it for me,'' she said, pushing it back in his hand. ''I haven't got any pockets.''

He smiled almost sadly, thinking for a moment of someone else, but then the moment was gone. ''Okay.''

She stood up. ''It's starting soon. I have to go to the hall.''

He stood too, faintly amused by the sight of the top of her head, considerably lower down than before, but still most definitely hers.

''I'll see you in there,'' he said, ''I just have to...do something.'' He started to walk away, but stopped, ''Good luck. You'll be brilliant, just you wait and see.''

...

The day before, Jackie is walking down the road to Paula's when a tall man in a pinstripe suit bumps in to her rather suddenly, causing her to drop her handbag. He's full of apologies, and quickly hands it back to her before walking away.

She doesn't notice him slipping in a small scrap of paper which reads _Tuesday. 2 o' clock. Rose's gymnastics show. Don't forget._

She finds it later and can't remember writing it, but she's glad she did, or she wouldn't be here now, sitting in the front row, yelling out her daughter's name as she climbs the rope hanging from the ceiling, ''GO ON, ROSE! YOU CAN DO IT!''

And as Rose swings across to a beam on the other side, a man is standing alone at the back of the hall. An image of that same little girl swinging on a rope towards him drifts into his mind, and this time he does not shut it out. Instead, he smiles, and thinks how brilliant that little girl turned out to be.

Bronze, he thinks, does not even begin to cover it.


	11. Pears

**AN: Ooh, long time, no write! But after getting DWM yesterday...and seeing that clip of episode 6 on Jonathan Ross (those vampires look AMAZING!) I'm even more psyched for series fnarg on Saturday, and that got me thinking about Doctor Who of course, so...here ya go. Oh, and this is probably my most fluffy chapter so far. Maybe. So be warned.**

**Disclaimer: No...but my hair's longer than Steven Moffat's. Not as long as it was on Friday, but still longer and I reckon that means I've got one over him.**

* * *

Pears. He honestly _could not _see what ANYONE saw in them, ever. They were vile. They had the texture of a Ravirian. They bruised as easily as an Eguia - you could bruise its whole body just by poking it, that was fun - and they were just...wrong. No-one should actively choose to eat pears. Never.

''Doctor, did you get them?''

Holding his nose with one hand, he picked up the carrier bag which contained - the horror, the horror - three packets of the revolting fruit.

''Oh, come on, it's not that bad,'' she said, taking them from him and cheekily waving one in front of his face. Then she pulled it away and bit down on it, juice spraying out in every direction, little waterfalls of peary blood nearly spattering his brand new suit. He stepped back, disgust on his face, but it faded away into a wide smile as he saw her, in profile, standing there by the window.

Pregancy suited Rose, he thought. She really glowed. The beauty of motherhood, and all that. Still, she could have chosen a less disturbing craving to have.

''I hope,'' he said with a grin, ''That he or she does not inherit this...strange taste. I don't think I could bear it.''

Rose smiled, wrapped her arms around his neck, ''Oh, you'll get used to it.''

As she pressed her lips against his, he thought that maybe...just once, the taste of pear was almost bearable. But he would never be _quite _used to this.

* * *


	12. Colour

**AN. No. _I _didn't expect to see me back here, either. Though I never planned to, I somehow drifted away from this pairing for a while. (A _long _while.) And then, half-past-midnight last night...this. I hope you like it. I still haven't decided if I do or not.**

**On reading over my older chapters, I find myself cringing quite a lot. My instinct was at first to delete some of the really poor ones, but fourteen-year-old me liked to write and darn it I'm not going to delete her just because she wasn't very good! To be honest, seventeen-year-old me isn't much better, anyway. :P**

**In any case... enjoy! Doctor Who belongs to Moffy and other people. None of them are me.**

* * *

_"But you mean more, mean more to me,  
__Than any colour I can see." - _Coldplay

* * *

Kelke was possibly the most colourful place Rose had ever seen. Quite literally, there seemed not to be shade of grey anywhere on the planet. Everywhere she looked, greens and yellows and reds swirled around in a beautiful, mad mix of hues that was unashamedly joyful.

It seemed to rub off on the people, too: the Kelks were carefree, happy souls with bright smiles to match their rainbow-coloured skin. Rose had been here all of five minutes, and already she was feeling lighter, less weighed down by the harrowing experience of her kidnap and maltreatment on Jandersto. She suspected the Doctor had done this on purpose - taken her to the universe's happiest planet as some kind of recuperation therapy, but it didn't bother her. She was determined to enjoy today.

She hated how the Doctor was looking at her, though; the slightly worried glances in between his babblings about how _brilliant _the music of Kelke was, and how _spectacular _their circuses were supposed to be. She greeted each of them with a grin meant to reassure him, but she knew he was still concerned about her. In another situation she might have been pleased at his attentions, but she didn't like worrying him.

Somewhere amongst the busy stalls of the market of Trassa, she lost him. A Kelk woman with glorious sapphire-coloured skin offered to decorate Rose's hands with the intricate floral designs all the women seemed to wear, and Rose smiled and nodded, sitting down in the armchair shown to her. The faint tickle of the paintbrush against her skin made her feel utterly relaxed, and she reminded herself that the Doctor had an uncanny knack of finding her eventually, so she needn't worry.

* * *

The TARDIS was being irritable. Or at least, the Doctor was reluctant to admit to feeling irritable himself, and was blaming his ship for his subsequent bad driving. Either way, this was certainly not Erullia, or the Charris Cluster: this was somewhere else entirely.

He recognised it as soon as he stepped out of the door (the TARDIS refused to dematerialise; she clearly wanted him here for some reason). He'd been here before, what felt like a lifetime ago. Kelke. Known throughout the galaxy as "the Planet of Rejoicing".

The Doctor didn't feel very much like rejoicing at the moment. In fact, he hadn't felt inclined to do so for quite a while now. If he was honest, the happy-happy atmosphere which now enveloped him made him all the more miserable.

Clearly he'd arrived on market day, because he was surrounded by stalls of all possible shades selling wares of every imaginable kind. He felt another pang; it had been market day the last time he'd been here. With Rose.

He swallowed. Why was the TARDIS doing this to him? He'd been trying to avoid all that - memories of his friends, of what he'd done to them all. Of what he couldn't do again, not after Donna. Surely there were enough planets in the universe to avoid repeats like this.

Resignedly, he began to walk through the marketplace, a forlorn figure in amongst the rainbow of happy natives. Their joy exhausted him. Didn't they know there was nothing to be happy about?

"My hands have never looked so good. Thanks...sorry, Krissa, was it?"

His ears must be playing tricks on him.

"Yes, friend, Krissa is my name. Laren Krissa Ajolis. May I know yours?"

A Kelk woman behind him was chatting with a customer, that was all. The similarity of the voice was purely coincidence, and the next reply should prove it. Because her name couldn't possibly be...

"Rose Tyler. Rose. Thanks, again, for my hands. How much do I owe you? I'll have to find my friend..."

Suddenly one of his hearts seemed to stop; the other pounded. That voice...just to hear it again...

"Oh, we never ask visitors to our world for money. Only to share in our joy."

"I'll do that all right. It's lovely, this place. Everyone so happy. Makes a change."

Unable to bear it any longer, he turned around. And there she was: Rose Tyler. Brilliant, fantastic Rose who he'd lost, twice - unblemished as yet by their separation, seeming to glow in the bright Kelk sun. His Rose.

"All who come to Kelke will find happiness, friend Rose. You, I think, have seen sadness."

"A bit, yeah. Surprised you lot even have a word for it!"

"Our word for sadness comes from the word for 'stranger'. It is a strange concept to us."

"Makes sense. Well, I should probably go and find my friend. See ya, Krissa. Thank you."

"It was a joy, friend Rose. Until next time."

She turned too quickly for the Doctor to duck behind a stall-cloth, and gave him a cheery wave. "There you are!"

He blinked. He hadn't counted on her seeing him, or confusing him with...himself. He coughed, hastily, "Hello."

She came to join him, and frowned slightly. "Is that a different tie? It looks different."

He glanced down. It was unlikely he'd been wearing this same tie the day he'd brought her here. "Um, no. Yes. There's a stall over there," he flung his out arm in a wild sweep which encompassed most of the rest of the market, "with lots of ties. Apparently they don't charge you if you're a visitor."

She grinned, and held up her hands, which were exquisitely patterned in brightly coloured flower designs. "I know. Look at these!"

He nodded approvingly. "Beautiful."

Suddenly, she flung her arms around him instead. "You can stop worrying about me, Doctor." she said into his ear. "I'm fine. And thank you for bringing me here. I needed it."

He closed his eyes. To have her so close, so tangible, one last time... Silently, he echoed her words, addressing the TARDIS. _Thank you for bringing me here. I needed it. _

She kissed him lightly on the cheek and pulled away. They smiled at each other. Then she grabbed his hand and began to pull him away towards another stall, and he allowed himself to be swallowed up in the throng of people, to drift away from her. He saw her turn back and scan the crowd for him, but he quickly hid behind a large Kelk man. Somewhere out there, her Doctor was waiting for her. Somewhere out there, a much luckier version of himself didn't know how lucky he was.

* * *

When Rose found the Doctor again, he had changed back into his old tie and was carrying two sticks of what looked suspiciously like candy-floss. He held one out to her and she took a bite, the sugary goodness taking her back to funfairs and theme parks of her childhood.

"I liked that one better anyway," she remarked, indicating the tie.

He looked mock-baffled. "What?"

She giggled. "Never mind. Men and clothes, honestly, it doesn't matter what species you are. You're all useless."

He grinned. "Yep. Nice hands, by the way."

"Come off it. Mmm, this stuff is gorgeous."

"Changes colour every minute. Did you see the acrobats?"

"No!"

"Ah, we can't leave before you've seen them. They're _magnifico_! _Eccellente_! And a number of other Italian words. Which reminds me, we're going to have to do Florence one of these days."

And as the crowded market swallowed them up, neither of them heard the grating, groaning sound of a dematerialising TARDIS, one that carried another Doctor out into the stars once more. Alone.

* * *

_**I love reviews. Just, y'know, thought I'd say. :P**_


End file.
